On the corner of South Foster and North Boulevard, in a building modeled to look like a little red schoolhouse, it felt like Christmas every day for the smallest Baton Rougeans. When Mr. A.P. “Tony” Acosta opened Play and Learn, Inc. in 1972, it became the first retail outlet in the South specializing in toys and games designed to encourage learning.

For most parents today, it’s impossible to imagine such a time when toys were simply playthings. Studies, research and data, and let’s not forget social media, have revolutionized parenting and ramped up the desire to ensure that play has a purpose. It seems every toy now directly correlates with a skill or developmental milestone that must be met and perfected to prepare babies, crawlers and tots for the next step.

Some baby-rearing advice has made a complete 180 since the 1970s, including how experts advise caregivers to place infants for sleep and introduce them to new foods. However, the rule book for play essentially remains the same: offer kids a safe space and let their imaginations soar. And that is precisely what the toy and game selection available at Play and Learn, Inc., encouraged parents to do.

Hailed as authentic and practical, the shop’s best-sellers included pint-sized kitchens and playsets made from wood, which Acosta was quick to point out were costly but only so because they were built to last. Kids’ favorites were the blocks, abacuses, tricycles, xylophones and train sets still in playrooms—and, let’s be honest, sprawled across living rooms—today.